Category: Mining

We’re at one of those moments when everyone suddenly remembers that Africa exists. Right through the pandemic, the debt crisis, and climate talks, the continent and its needs were seemingly invisible. But nothing sharpens the eye like an upcoming FOCAC summit. ...

The economic turmoil brought on by the ongoing pandemic has done nothing to stem the appetite of Chinese mining companies looking to expand their presence in Africa. This week alone, Chinese mining giants Zijin and Chifeng Jilong both received approval this week to proceed with deals that total ...

U.S. President Joe Biden's son, Hunter (photo), is once again at the center of a rapidly expanding controversy, this time about the sale of U.S. mining company Freeport-McMoRan's stake in the massive Tenke Fungurume copper and cobalt mine in the DR Congo to the Chinese mining giant China ...

A Chinese large-scale farmer was arrested by local authorities in the small village of Kidogozelo in eastern Tanzania for using a high-capacity pump to draw water from the Ruvu river to irrigate his vegetable farm. The unnamed Chinese national is accused of installing and using an illegal ...

Two-way China-Africa trade reached $185.2 billion in the first nine months of the year, according to new data provided by Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Qian Keming. At this pace, the two regions will easily surpass last year's total of $187 billion. Chinese investment in Africa during the same period increased ...

A fascinating political struggle is playing out in Liberia over a controversial 25-year iron ore deal with Chinese company BAO Chico. Last week, the Senate ratified the deal in what critics contend was effectively a rubber stamp decision after only minimal discussion and no expert ...

This year has seen steadily rising tensions between Chinese companies and local communities in rural Zimbabwe. These communities live in areas where Chinese firms have been expanding their granite, diamond, and other mining and construction activities.  There's ...

DR Congo's cobalt mining sector is notorious for worker abuse and exploitation. Until now, most of the focus has been on the informal, or artisanal mines where there is no government or corporate oversight, and the presence of child laborers has been well-documented over the years.

If there was any doubt that Chinese mining companies were paying for positive media coverage in the Congolese press, a pair of tweets on Wednesday (photo) should settle the issue. The Sino-Congolese mining giant Sicomines touted its presence at the China International Import Expo that took place ...

The Liberian Senate voted on Friday to approve a controversial $2.5 billion iron ore for infrastructure deal with the Chinese mining giant BAO Chico. The origins of the deal date back to the 2018 FOCAC summit when President George Weah negotiated the arrangement ...

China's ambassador to the DR Congo, Zhu Jing, reacted angrily on Monday to a video circulating on Congolese Twitter that purportedly shows a Sicomines worker exhuming the corpse of one of his colleagues (NSFW). The video was posted over ...

DR Congo President Félix Tshisekedi met one-on-one with his U.S. counterpart, Joe Biden, on Friday in the run-up to the G20 summit that took place over the weekend in Rome.  There's been a lot of interest in recent months